Halo 4 NYCC 2012 Hands-On Preview

When I heard Halo 4 would have a presence at New York Comic Con this year, it became clear which booth I would be visiting first. The next installment in the megaton series was showing off its version of Team Slayer at the show. so it was time to dust off my Halo skills and see how 343 Industries is innovating this established multiplayer formula.

Expanding on the customization options of Halo: Reach, Halo 4 gives players more freedom with their weapon loadouts. Instead of just choosing from a list of predetermined weapon and armor ability sets, gamers will be able to pick a primary weapon, secondary weapon, grenade type, armor ability, tactical package, and support upgrade. It’s essentially the Call of Duty format in Mjolnir Mark VI armor. There will be limitations, however, as each player will get only five loadouts to customize. Furthermore, most weapons, armor abilities, and perks will need to be unlocked through playing matches. Of course, every other shooter game needs to unlock weapons and perks as well, so there won’t be a need for too much adjustment.

As for my loadout, I chose the DMR, magnum, extra ammo, mobility for a constant sprint, and the hardlight shield. The shield acts in a similar fashion to the ones used by Jackals in previous games, being deployed for an extra bit of cover while trying to survive. As implied by the mobility perk, sprinting is now available from the start (another idea brought over from CoD) and no longer relegated to an armor ability. Score one for progress!

As my match started, I quickly identified with the map I would be fighting in: formerly known as Valhalla in Halo 2, which itself was the remake of Halo: Combat Evolved‘s Blood Gulch, I fought in a long valley with two bases known as Ragnarok. It’s been given a visual facelift, but the arena is basically the same. Once I got my bearings, I took to the side of my base to find a vehicle (because everyone knows there are vehicles outside of the base) and discovered something…quite surprising waiting for me. I feasted my eyes upon the Mantis: a bipedal mech with a machine gun, rockets, and a foot-stomp move I could use to tear into and flatten foes. Unfortunately durability is not its strong suit, as other Mantises and Covenant vehicles can tear it to shreds fairly quickly, not to mention the possibility of being hijacked by enemies and blown useless via grenade a la Scorpion tanks.

When I finally engaged the enemy, the action got intense. Every gun screams its presence across the map thanks to the sound design, while recoil and reloading animations have a feeling of weight and power. It creates a visceral experience unmatched in any Halo game to date, which says a lot given the series’ history.

Significantly absent on the map was the presence of predictable power weapon locations due to the inclusion of Ordnance. These will drop power weapons randomly, eliminating the franchise-long problem of one team camping these locations for an easier win. Ordnance also acts as a call-in reward for players who accrue a certain number of points during a match. These points, like other top FPS properties, can be gained through a variety of means and aren’t limited to kills.

Despite all the changes, additions, and improvements that seem to move away from a traditional Halo experience and towards that of Call of Duty or Battlefield, my demo session still felt distinctly Halo. The pacing, animations, and other mechanics still stick to the roots that made this FPS franchise the giant it is today. So long as 343 keeps that going, it should have a winner on its hands come November 6 when Halo 4 launches exclusively on the Xbox 360.

Mike has been playing games for over two decades. His earliest memories are of shooting ducks and stomping goombas on NES, and over the years, the hobby became one of his biggest passions. Mike has worked with GamerNode as a writer and editor since 2009, giving you news, reviews, previews, a voice on the VS Node Podcast, and much more.

3 Comments on "Halo 4 NYCC 2012 Hands-On Preview"

Great preview, Mike. I love that I keep hearing that this game feels decidedly Halo, despite its CoD-like additions. But…

“These will drop power weapons randomly, eliminating the franchise-long problem of one team camping these locations for an easier win.”

I don’t think this a “franchise-long problem.” Static power weapon locations keep Halo fair, allowing the team that better executes its strategy to secure power weapons. The weapon drops inject randomness into a multiplayer formula that in the past has prided itself on a consistent set of rules.

I’m happy with each franchise’s multiplayer because they’re two very different experiences. However, I favor Halo because, when killed, I always know what I did wrong and what I can do differently in the future to improve. I’m worried Halo 4 eschews this in favor of arcadey mahem a la Call of Duty.

I don’t really think making the power weapons randomized is Halo pulling
a Call of Duty though. It’s changing up the way Halo is Halo. Call of
Duty doesn’t have power weapon spawns at all. Besides, you still have
the physics engines, wild kills, vehicles, and several other aspects
that Halo 4 is keeping very Halo.

Knowing where the power weapons
are in the match is nice, but I wouldn’t call it fair. It allows teams
that get the power weapons first to camp those locations, creating a bit
of an imbalance in the match. Randomizing these guns keeps them in the
game, but eliminates camping and puts more of a focus on proper
management of those weapons and positioning strategy. If anything, that
makes the game more fair.

Besides, if you’re really competitive
in Halo and do MLG playlists, power weapons are mostly ignored as you
become so skilled with BRs and DMRs that they become unnecessary. And
this isn’t going to change you knowing what you did wrong or not in
previous Halo games.

Trust me when I say this: Based on what I played, Halo is still Halo. Randomized power weapon spawns don’t change that.